Rethinking My Ski Pole Length

What if the traditional way of sizing ski poles is still right—but we’ve been measuring from the wrong position?

No need to beat around the bush… suggested pole length has changed. But why has it changed, and why is that important?

For a long time, proper pole length was determined by holding the pole upside down, with your hand underneath the basket. If your elbow formed a 90° angle, you had the correct pole length. I don’t know how long this methodology has existed, but I once saw it in a post-World War II training video.

I’m 6’1”, and for many years my ideal pole length was 135 cm. Several years ago, 66% of your height became a suggested starting point. For me, that would put my pole length around 120–125 cm.

Last year, I skied mostly with 115 cm poles

So Why the Change?

The short answer: skis changed, and then skiing technique changed.

Prior to the mid-1990s, traditional ski technique relied heavily on up-unweighting at transition, followed by re-engaging the skis at initiation. With long, relatively straight skis, producing a clean carved turn required considerably more effort and precision.

Then the equipment changed.

The Equipment Changed

By the late 1990s, shape skis had become mainstream, and by the mid-2000s, most performance skis looked much like those we use today. Increased sidecut and changes in ski construction made it possible to turn the ski with less steering and more edge engagement.

And technique evolved with the equipment.

The movement pattern shifted toward more lateral tipping and, eventually, today’s high-performance technique of a heavily flexed transition.

Pole technique evolved as well.

Traditional pole plants were closely tied to the skier’s upward movement. Modern pole use is often more subtle—a swing and touch while the upper body remains relatively quiet through transition.

In that technique, a long pole provides little benefit. At best, it gets in the way. At worst, it can encourage an upward movement that works against the flexed transition you’re trying to create.

None of this means the pole has become unimportant. It still contributes to timing, rhythm and balance, and its role changes with terrain and turn type.

So Does the 66% Math Work?

It’s a good starting point, but I wouldn’t consider it a rule.

My progression

135 cm Traditional 90° sizing

↓

120–125 cm 66% of my height

↓

115 cm What I skied most of last year

My pole length is about 62% of my height. I’m working toward a lower transition, and I don’t mind missing a pole touch occasionally if it means staying weighted to my equipment through transition.

As the skier flexes more deeply, the hands move closer to the snow. If pole length remains the same, something has to accommodate that difference.

The skier can alter the position of the hands, change the angle of the pole, or extend the body.

A shorter pole allows me to maintain the body position I’m looking for without making those accommodations.

A Different Way to Measure

That led me back to the old 90° method, but with a change.

Rather than letting an upright position determine pole length, I let the skiing position I’m trying to achieve determine it.

Put on your equipment and move into the flexed position you’re looking for. Hold a pole upside down with your hand underneath the basket. If your elbow forms approximately a 90° angle, you’re in the right neighborhood.

Interestingly, the measurement hasn’t really changed. The position in which I’m taking the measurement has.

Try It Yourself

I recommend adjustable ski poles while working through this process.

Start with a reasonable number and ski it for a while. Then shorten the poles in small increments.

Instead of simply asking whether they feel too short, pay attention to what happens to your skiing:

Can you stay flexed more easily?

Does the pole touch require less movement?

Do your hands remain where you want them?

Eventually, you’ll find the point where going shorter stops helping.

Recommended pole length has changed because the equipment changed, allowing skiing technique to change. As technique has refined, smaller equipment details are being reconsidered to assist—or at least not hinder—that evolution.

Maybe the better question isn’t:

“How long should my poles be?”

It’s:

“What pole length supports the way I’m trying to ski?”

My poles have become 20 cm shorter.

Sure has made packing for ski trips that little bit easier.